Renewable energy mandates scrutinized across the country

Kansas came close to repealing rules

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — State government mandates requiring utilities to buy a portion of their power from renewable resources are coming under fire across the country, including in Kansas, which observers say came as close as any to repealing its rules this year.

Kansas lawmakers have refused to eliminate the mandate for the past three years, but the Kansas City Star (http://bit.ly/1gZzoWh) reports opponents are inching closer to repeal. Twenty-nine states have renewable energy mandates, and bills weakening or repealing them came up in at least nine states this year — including Kansas and Missouri.

Conservative groups like Americans for Prosperity and the Kansas Senior Consumer Alliance are battling for repeal because they say the mandates amount to government intrusion and are nothing more than tax increases.

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For free market conservatives, the idea of a non-market mandate for a specific source of energy use is a waste of resources. This protest would be the same if they mandated use of coal, nuclear, oil, etc. It just happens the mandate is renewable energy. This is a pretty basic philosophy, so I wouldn't be surprised if almost every free market group protests this.

since the Koch's fund Americans for Prosperity. The Kochs get a big chunk of money each year from oil and coal. If we go to renewable energy before we deplete the existing oil and coal the Kochs might profit a few billion dollars less a year. But when you profit 20 billion a year a few billion less will not cause them to miss a meal or not go on any trip they want to take.